Gossip Girl is receiving local coverage (The NY Times) and, now, national coverage: the show is featured in USA Today.

Here is an excerpt from the feature:

Gossip Girl is trying to inherit the teen-soap throne once claimed by The OC and, before it, Beverly Hills, 90210.

So it's natural to wonder how the latest spin on the formula differs from its predecessors.

This time, the fun moves to the East Coast, as Manhattan private-school juniors claw their way up the social ladder toward prestigious colleges and into each other's bedrooms in the CW series (premieres September 19).

The OC tracked a less sophisticated, nouveau-riche crowd, whereas Gossip's is old money, says Josh Schwartz, 31, executive producer of both series.

The OC's denizens were more laid back, while Gossip is full of strivers, "driven and ambitious and forward-looking," having competed for slots in nursery school. And Gossip's gossips are tech-savvy, with their Sidekicks, MySpace pages and frantic text-messaging.

"In the pilot for The OC, Ryan Atwood is talking on a pay phone. I don't think these guys even know what that is," Schwartz says in a recent interview on the set at a Brooklyn school courtyard, gesturing toward two young actors kicking a soccer ball between scenes.

And the Fox series that ended last spring centered, at least initially, on the relationship of Seth and his "adopted" brother Ryan, whereas Gossip focuses on two female "frenemies," Serena van der Woodsen (Blake Lively) and Blair Waldorf (Leighton Meester), who were once close but now are estranged by jealousy and betrayal.

Follow our link to read the full Gossip Girl article.

Steve Marsi is the Managing Editor of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Google+ or email him here.